The Roundup

The Roundup comes late today because it's my last day of work and I had to power mark my way to the bottom of a pile of first year undergrad history exams this morning.

Did you know that many Germans had "anti-semantic" views in the 1930s?

Where you aware that "Hitler gave aids to General Franco" during the Spanish Civil War?

In addition to being history's greatest monster, he apparently also found the time to be patient zero of the HIV/AIDS scourge that would explode three decades after he shot himself in the Fuhrerbunker.

And it is with a not-so-heavy heart that I retire from my post as graduate teaching assistant at an undisclosed Ontario university. Thanks for the memories, kids.

(Somewhat-related note: if you're in your early to mid 20s and find yourself backpacking through Germany, it's a pretty good kick if you ask your English mate Andy to ask a random Berliner--in fluent German--if he knows the way to the Fuhrerbunker...)

On to more sundry baseball matters...

Dave Purcey is, of course, starting tonight and that makes me feel warm and fuzzy where I pee. We've been championing the young-ish Southpaw pretty much since we started operations here in February, though I admit to feeling more than a bit of trepidation considering the fearsome Tigers lineup he'll be facing in his debut. Regardless of the outcome, we still love you Big D. And if all does go well, you'll find yourself deafened by the sound of congradulatory back-slapping on our part. Not that we contributed in any way, really, but for some reason it feels like credit should be due.

(Seriously Tao of Stieb, you backed a three-legged pony when you threw your support behind Buck Coats.)

File this under outrageous: an outstanding effort tonight from Purcey and continued Gustavo Chacinery from Jesse "the Body" Litsch over the next few weeks and don't be shocked if the two get swapped on the organizational depth chart (I almost wrote "depth charge"; time to step away from the military history, weirdo...). That means Purcey as 5th starter and the other guy riding the bus in upstate New York. Litsch, incidentally, will not appear in this Tigers series which is pretty lucky for him since he'd likely end up wearing his ass for a hat by the end of the afternoon if he did face them.

How old is Kenny Rogers? So fucking old that he's actually logged innings at the Ex! He's also dominant in the Rogers Centre/Skydome (11-4, 3.32 ERA in 86.2 innings). Since we've lost every game started by a lefty this year (the games that were supposed to be gimmes) and The Roaster has the aforementioned track record in TO, I'm going to make this one my Jimmy the Greek can't miss victory of the night.

Matchups for the series are:

Roaster- Purcey
Bonderman-McGowan
Robertson-Burnett
Armando Gallaraga (who?)-Marcum

A split would be regarded by many (including me) as a small triumph of sorts. Game previews here, as always.

ELSEWHERE:

* The Rays are now starting to take some lumps, too. Carlos Pena is day-to-day with some hammy issues, joining drunken UFC Champ Al Reyes, Matt Garza and Scott Kazmir in the infirmary.

* Bizzaro! The Rays lock Evan Longoria up for 6-9 years even though he's only been up for a week or two. Eric Hinske's locker can't be too far away, but apparently The Dude's spotty track record didn't disuade Rays brass from making such a risky move.

-- Johnny Was

The Roundup

Those of you who watched the Tigers-Chisox on ESPN Sunday Night Baseball yesterday almost certainly had your ears perk up when Jon Miller and Joe Morgan started heaping praise on the Jays' starting staff.

Miller: They've got Halladay, Burnett [trails off, awkward pause]... McGowan [noted with a trace of excitment, not for the player, mind, but for the fact that his name was remembered.]

Morgan: [15 second pause, during which time he's probably been handed a note from his producer] and Marcum...

No mention of Jesse Litsch? Ok, true, these guys are senile old relics with golden voices and wrong-headed opinions, but one has to take some satisfaction at the continent-wide shoutout they threw our way.

Most people would feel pretty satisfied by a 3-game home sweep of the defending World Series Champs regardless of the circumstances, but Blair has a million reasons why you shouldn't. If you want your parade pissed on, go ahead and read his commentary this morning. Blame it all on Japan, or a season-starting road-trip, or something. How tired was David Ortiz (1 for 11 with no extra-base hits in T.O.) from all those physically taxing innings logged in the field? How about Sean Casey, whose game-transforming error allowed the Jays to blow Saturday's matchup wide open? He must've been tired, too, even though it was his first start of the season.

Gordon Ramsay would have a field day with all of this lame excuse-making.

Here's what Hill had to say to the Boston media:

Second baseman Aaron Hill felt the Jays may have caught the Red Sox at the right time.

"They looked tired," Hill said. "Their players were telling me they've been on the road for 20 days and all those countries. They looked tired. But even though they're tired, we still had to go out there and try to beat them and take advantage of it. It was a good way to start the homestand."

That's right. Keeping your boot on the enemy's throat shows a sense of urgency. Every game counts, every W is vital. The club certainly could have taken 2 of 3, starting the year 3-3 after a half dozen games against the Bosox and Yankees and everyone would've been content. But they didn't let up yesterday as one probably would've expected them to last year. There's some profound significance to that, folks.

While the New York papers (aside from the venerable Times) perpetuate ignorance and tribalism, Bostonians are usually treated to relatively balanced and insightful articles from their local hacks. Like this one, praising Roy Halladay, even though he was a bit off yesterday. (Oh: and a cookie for anyone who can tell me why he was left in for the eighth with a semi-comfortable lead in the first week of April.)

("A Wang-derful Day in Bronx", screams today's New York Post. Ummmm...)

Also from Beantown, Nick Cafardo of the Globe ponders the implications of the Jays' pitching, which outlanders are just now starting to recognize. And why do I note this piece? Because it's written by someone smart enough to realize that no one club is birthrighted any rank in the standings and there is an element of unpredictability to this game. That is too much to ask from a greasy New Yorker apparently.

Today's trivia question: will Buck Coats finish the year with more Games Played than At Bats?

Some notes of an encouraging nature from the Post:

* Rolen's rehab is going swimmingly
* The Beej is on form and ready to rejoin the club next week
* Armando Benitez--yep, that guy--is lookin' good enough to join the big club

The last two points raise the question of whether we have a surplus bullpen arm to trade. There are a couple of hitches, though. Most clubs are healthy now and don't have as great of a need as they will in July, which is problematic seeing as Benitez will likely not agree to slosh around in minor league system after May 1. Unless there are some crazy visa issues, perhaps. The other sticky wicket is that the teams that are most screaming for bully help are semi-legit to legit AL rivals like Tampa Bay and Detroit. I'm going to wildly speculate that while there may be an opportunity in here, it will be passed on because of the risk involved.

Wilner notes, amongst other things, that his Wednesday chats with JP could resume again this week. Or next.

No game tonight, of course. Here are the pitching match-ups for the upcoming Oakland series.

-- Johnny Was

Simmer down, ya'll!

This being the laptop/internet era, word travels fast and crazy rumours (started by irresponsible fantasy writers at ESPN, for example) can be quashed almost as soon as they start. Thanks Wilner!

Chalk the story Twitchy brought to your attention earlier today up as a "humourous misunderstanding" that resulted from a pretty bold assumption from said writers. Neither Marcum nor Burnett will be missing any time due to phantom injuries. Collective sigh of relief.

And, in other sweet news the roster has been "set". Cutting and pasting directly from Wilner's blog we have...

Pitchers (12 - what can I tell you):

Roy Halladay, A.J. Burnett, Dustin McGowan, Shaun Marcum, Jesse Litsch, Jeremy Accardo, Scott Downs, Brandon League, Jason Frasor, Brian Tallet, Brian Wolfe, Randy Wells

Catchers (2): Gregg Zaun, Rod Barajas

Infielders (6): Lyle Overbay, Aaron Hill, David Eckstein, Marco Scutaro, John McDonald, Frank Thomas (I guess this is where you put him)

Outfielders (5): Vernon Wells, Alex Rios, Matt Stairs, Shannon Stewart, Buck Coats

Disabled list (3): Casey Janssen (60-day), Scott Rolen (15-day), B.J. Ryan (15-day)

NOTE: by using italics I am signalling that yes, I have copied this material from another source, but no, this somehow isn't plagarism.

No surprises here. Coats gets bumped when Rolen comes back and probably Wolfe does so later to make way for the Beej. Things are unfolding as they should.

I'm kind of interested in Randy "R-Dub" Wells, who's a high energy guy and naturally pretty pumped about the prospect of tasting (?) his first taste of big league action. Buck Coats won't make us forget Scott Rolen (did we even get to know him?), but I guess that is a pretty cool name. I'm just saying nice things about everyone now, aren't I?

-- Johnny Was

Who is Randy David Wells?

Unlike fragile flower Bronson Arroyo, my hangovers only last a few hours, so it's back to work here at my usual standard of excellence if a few hours later than usual.

A few days ago I said I'd look into JP's recent pickup, Randy David Wells and do something along the lines of my profile of Buck Coats. As promised, here we go.

First question: is that "David" part a nickname?

Answer: no it is not.

The 25-year-old Cub farmhand and former blogger was selected 11th overall (like that matters) in the December Rule 5 draft, which means he has to be offered back to Chicago for a token amount if we don't keep him on the 25 man roster all year. One would think that if JP really liked this hulking right-hander's arm we could stash him as the 7th man in the bully, a job that requires only slightly more work than the Maytag repair man. Our pen is pretty deep, though, so it might be premature to assume he'll be going north with the big boys.

This is what JP had to saw about RD Wells (or R-Dub?) back in December:

He's a guy who can do both -- start or go in the 'pen," Blue Jays general manager J.P. Ricciardi said. "He gives us a little bit of depth. We'll give him a chance to come in and win a job. We've got some guys that do have options that we could send [to the Minors]."

Ok, sounds good. Everybody likes versatility, right? Hang on. Just under a week ago JP said Wells was "somewhat of a consideration" to be stretched out for starting duties along with Brian Wolfe and Kane Davis (who?). Not exactly a ringing endorsement. This is what Bastian said in today's mailbag:

Wells has pitched well this spring, evidenced by the five shutout innings he's turned in during Grapefruit League play. The only issue is that Wells' outings have all been late-inning appearances -- a time when the opposing teams tend to have mostly Minor Leaguers in the lineup. So take the results for what they're worth.

Gibbons has had nothing but good things to say about Wells, though, and the pitcher's chances of making the team certainly weren't hurt when Janssen was sidelined. Toronto has a lot of relief arms in the mix for only a couple of spots, so it'll be interesting to see how it plays out. Right now, Wells might be on the outside looking in.

That really doesn't clarify anything, does it?

Looking at Wells minor league numbers, there are definitely some promising signs, like a 3:1 K:BB ratio through his pro career and a K/9 IP rate of 9.5 in AAA last year. Nice, nice. He put up a stellar age 22 season mostly as a reliever in A+ ball, posting an ERA of 2.74 and great peripherals across the board. He was fantastic again the next year in AA, but slowed at AAA in late 2006 and 2007 (in the notoriously hitter friendly Pacific Coast League it should be noted). His hits, walks, and home runs per 9 were just a bit too high there, which probably convinced Cubbies brass to expose him over the off season.

But what stands out as odd is that Wells pitching line starts at age 20 in 2003 at the Rookie level. Did he drop out of college? Nope... And then I stumbled across it: he's a converted catcher! Cool! So there you have it, he's come to the craft of pitching a little later than normal (because he was a .147 hitter in the nether regions of the minors).

Returning now to a useful resource I frequently plagiarize from when I need info on Cubs prospects, CubsHub.com, we learn the following:

Randy Wells, the Cubs drafted him in 38th round in 2002 as a catcher. He sputtered at the beginning of his career offensively but showed a strong arm. So the Cubs converted him to a pitcher, since the switch Wells has flown through the system. He was lights out during the first half of the 2006 season at AA before getting challenged in AAA. This year [2007] at Iowa, he split time as a starter and a reliever, without a doubt he’s much more effective as a reliever with his sinking fastball and plus slider.

Sinker, nice. That should play well with our infield defence. But it doesn't appear that Wells is cut out for starting any more than Buck Coats is for a return to the infield. A saviour this man does not seem to be for a club now semi-concerned by the loss of starting depth that came with Casey Janssen's season-ending injury.

-- Johnny Was

Who is Buck Coats?

A proper bio on this lanky international man of mystery seems appropriate given some early spring training buzz and his recent arrival to the Jays organization. Some are calling him a dark horse candidate for the 25th roster spot. Those people are wrong, but hey, aren't we all at times?

Mop Up Duty really phoned in its Coats scouting report today, which inspired me to do some deeper research (cough, hitting the first three google links, cough). This is what I found.

Coats was originally drafted out of high school by the Cubs in the 18th round of the 2000 amateur draft, slowly climbed the ranks before his first cup of coffee in 2006, then was traded to the Reds organization at the end of last year because the Cubs just had too many players in the same mould. In his age 25 season he put up a nice looking .303/.363/.435 line in AAA, though it must be noted this came in the PCL, which has a reputation as an extreme hitter's league.

Since he's spent the bulk of his career in the Cubs organization, I thought I'd poke around Cubs sources first for some scouting reports. CubsHub.com did a pretty detailed look back in late 2006 from which I will now proceed to plagarize liberally.

The most alarming thing on Coats' stat sheet is his defense from three seasons as a shortstop in the low minors. This is incredible:

2001 - 51 errors in A ball in his age 21 season
2002 - 29 more at A+
2003 - 33 at AA

What in the HELL happened here? He's being now touted as a super utility player and these raw numbers might lead one to the impression that he fields worse than Russ Adams' grandma.

Well, CubsHub provides some explanation:

The Cubs took Buck Coats in the 18th round of the 2000 draft from Valdosta High School in Georgia where he was the school’s shortstop and one of the better hitting prospects in the state at the time. Scouts loved his speed in the field and on the basepaths, they also raved about his quick wrists at the plate. But the writing was on the wall when scouts basically called his defense ugly and that it’d be a miracle if he stayed at SS with his brick hands and poor throwing accuracy. While Coats’ power abilities have yet to develop into what the organization felt he was capable when drafting him, he’s displayed great doubles plus potential.

The best athlete on a high school baseball team almost always plays shortstop, or sometimes centrefield. Scouts basically knew that Coats should have been shifted to another position when he started playing pro ball, but for some reason he was allowed to have three atrocious seasons in the field before he was moved to the outfield. It was as obvious as a punch in the face, but the Cubs organization didn't make the necessary move. I reiterate, the Cubs organization.

Back to CubsHub. Apparently Coats transitioned well to the OF, takes good routes, has good range, and shows a strong arm. Unsurprisingly, his error numbers there are back down to the acceptable range.

Coats hasn't seen regular duty in the infield since 2005 and had no games there last year. He's played a handful of games at second and third in the minors, though any thoughts of him returning to short should be jettisoned with extreme prejudice. CubsHub really doesn't think he can play third in the bigs, but might get by at second.

If he does break with the Jays at some point in the future, I'd expect it to be as a 4th-5th OF who only sees time in the infield under extreme circumstances. There's nothing wrong with that, but we shouldn't get the idea that he's as versatile as, say, Marco Scutaro.

On the offensive side, Coats has one asset that's lacking from our bench: base-stealing speed. In 2007 he went 18 for 20, 17 for 21 in '06, 17 for 22 in '05, and 27 of 36 in'04 . That kind of success--especially last year's--is close to the acceptable range of success rates. In the lower minors he went "Buck" Wild (haha?), stealing a high of 32 bases in '03, but his percentage wasn't as good. That's typical of younger players in the lower levels, where coaches are more aggressive with their runners. The Mid-West League Guide lists him as a plus baserunner during both of his seasons with the Lansing Lugnuts (then a Cubs affiliate).

As a hitter, Coats isn't going to pull your hair back. He put up near identical lines in A+, AA and his first kick in AAA in the .280/.340/.390 neighbourhood. That points to a very fringy major league career as 4th OF/pinch runner if he ever does stick.

Nevertheless, as I mentioned earlier Coats put up a pretty solid line of .303/.363/.435 last year in his second go at AAA. As noted, he played in the hitter friendly PCL (as he did most of the year prior). Of interest is the fact that he added .20 of average and .60 points of SLG playing in the same league. Hitter's league or no, Coats definitely improved at the dish.

He also put up double digits for homeruns for the first time in his career and cut his K total to the lowest level since his A ball season in 2002. He's never going to put up impressive extra-base hit numbers, but does have gap power and plus speed. If he hasn't peaked yet, he's probably now playing as well as he can ever hope to.

JP acquired Coats in December via a trade with Reds for a some unremarkable minor league pitching, likely viewing him as a super util Marco Scutaro-esque bench player of the future. He may well end up fitting that bill in 2009 (or 2010 after Scooter has departed), but I just don't see even the remotest of chances of him going North as the 25th man this spring.

Since his infield defense leaves something to be desired at present, it would make no sense to carry a player who'd effectively be a 6th OF/pinch runner with a weak bat while Adam Lind--a legitimate hitting prospect with average D--was wasting his hours playing solitaire down in Syracuse. That said, Coats already does most of the things even the sunniest of Russ Adams optimists could hope for at this point in the career of JP's worst draft pick ever.

But, should Coats prove himself capable of playing an adequate second and third in addition to the OF at AAA this year, he may yet have a future with the club. In a perfect world where beer was free and the women exceedingly chesty, you might want to hope to see him develop into a Ryan Freel-type player. (Please hold your tomatoes until you compare their minor league numbers!)

This is reality, however. Before you go celebrating his next homerun by buying yourself a Buck Coats #87 jersey, just remember other luminaries who tore it up in spring trainings past. Guys like Gabe Gross...

-- Johnny Was

City TV Cavalcade of Excellence in Sports Broadcasting

Forget the cautious enthusiasm of more responsible members of the local media and commentators like ESPN's Buster Olney. CityTV says we's gonna beat them Yankees and Red Saaacks this year and git into the playoffs! Yeeeeeeehooooooo!

After watching the 3-hour Jays ticket infomercial/game this afternoon, I've got a new goal to strive for in life: becoming a fat, old, upper middle class season ticket holder who knows little to nothing about the sport despite watching 81 home games every year and sounds completely vapid when a reporter sticks a mic in my face and asks a rhetorical question.

We knew it was going to be bad, but just how bad was left to be seen. If you'd like a running commentary on this glorified OHL broadcast from Rogers community TV, go here. Me, I would like to cut them some slack because a) it was just an early spring training game and b) it was their first kick at the can, but they really dropped the ball on some of the basics. Such as:

* Cutting away from half an inning of play (such as the top of the ninth...) for a fluff colour piece...

* Asking players groan-inducing questions like "would you rather wake up with no toes or no hair?" Well, I'd look silly with no hair, so I'm gonna have to say "no toes." Right. This isn't going to help make the shier players more media accessible

* Gord Martineau's "Yessiree Bob. [Pause]. Nice." homerun call...

* Generally not knowing what the fuck is going on, who's at bat, what the count is, etc., is kind of well...

* If City TV broadcasts are to be run out of the Jays ticketing department, they simply cannot be allowed to do regular season games. Ever. Just no, it crosses the line.

Some further thoughts of a random nature:

* Without a hat, BJ Ryan looks like a slick Miami nightclub owner. Who'd a thought?

* Travis Snider, who singled to the opposite field in his lone AB, looks like he's going to be a Destroyer of Worlds.

* The Russ Adams Experiment should be rapidly drawing to a close. He can't field any position, or hit for that matter, and he's 28 years old. Cut bait. Stringy Buck Coats (who homered and stole a base) is two years younger, has plus speed, good base-stealing skills, plays 5 positions (though he shouldn't ever play SS in the bigs), and has a bat that's as good as Rusty's and probably getting better (.303/.363/.435 line in AAA in '07). I'm not saying he's going to be Ryan Freel, but he's on a similar trajectory. Here's your 25th man for 2009.

* The results of our Shannon Stewart poll were inconclusive. We need more readers/votes, I guess. Tell your friends! And thanks for participating.

-- Johnny Was